Posted on June 11, 2020
UPDATE: Tracy Spahr – Public & Media Relations Principal, Marketing & Communications for the Port, responded: “The Port reviewed a variety of sands and selected a sand of a quality, color and texture that closely matches the current sand at Kellogg Beach. The sand will be coming from East County Sand, LLC based in Lakeside, CA. The Port also received a permit from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and a water quality certification from the Regional Water Quality Control Board for this project.
For some background, the mission of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Regulatory Program is to protect the nation’s aquatic resources, while allowing reasonable development through fair, flexible and balanced permit decisions. The Corps evaluates permit applications for essentially all construction activities that occur in the nation’s waters, including wetlands. Corps permits are necessary for any work, including construction and dredging, in the nation’s navigable water and their tributary waters.
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We just received a press statement from the Port of San Diego announcing the Port will begin to replenish the sand at Kellogg Beach beginning on or near June 8. They expect the project to be completed by July.
For the public’s safety, “the beach will be closed during construction hours”, mainly between the hours of 8 am and 4:30 pm Monday through Friday, and maybe some weekends as well. Of course, there’s other restrictions.
Okay. Well, the main question residents and environmentalists should be asking is “where is the sand coming from?” If the sand is being dredged up off the San Diego Bay floor, there’s a problem. After decades of massive amounts of pollutants and toxins in the water, the sand on the bottom is highly suspect in its cleanliness.
People who have lived here know the challenges over the years to get the City, the Port and the Navy to clean up the bay and its waters. In fact, in the late 1980s, it was quite the issue. There has been some progress. But it’s unlikely the sand is clean enough to use on a public beach.
Hopefully, the sand has been dredged from less-toxic waters.
There’s also been a campaign to “save Kellogg Beach” from over-development these past few years.
Here’s the Port’s full statement:
Port of San Diego to Replenish Sand at Kellogg Beach
As part of the Port of San Diego’s continued efforts to keep San Diego Bay a treasured destination, the Port will be replenishing sand at Kellogg Beach. The project is anticipated to begin on or shortly after Monday, June 8, and most of the work is anticipated to be completed by July.
Located along the southwestern shoreline of the Shelter Island Yacht Basin in the Point Loma area of northern San Diego Bay, approximately 2,000 cubic yards of natural sand will be added to the beach. Replenishing the sand will enhance the experience for visitors and help protect the coastline from high levels of natural erosion by maintaining or improving the current slope of the beach to the water.
For public safety, the beach will be closed during construction hours, primarily between the hours of 8 a.m. and 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, and some weekend hours may occur as needed. The beach will be open during non-construction hours, per posted beach hours. In compliance with the County of San Diego’s public health order related to COVID-19, and in coordination with other coastal jurisdictions, Port beaches, including Kellogg Beach, are open for limited use only. Kayak and paddleboard launching, swimming, running, walking, sitting, and lying down are allowed. Activities such as volleyball and football are not allowed.
The Port reinvests the revenues from hundreds of businesses on the San Diego Bay waterfront back into local communities and the economy, which includes public infrastructure, public parks, fishing piers, cruise terminals, and more. The Kellogg Beach Sand Replenishment Project is budgeted as part of the Port’s 2019-2020 Major Maintenance Program. De La Fuente Construction, Inc. was awarded the contract for the project at the Board of Port Commissioners meeting in April.
Source: obrag.org
